Exterior Rehabilitation & Replacement
DiDonato is providing design and construction administration services to Rehabilitate Exterior Envelope and Skylights, Center for the Arts (CFA) Building at the University of Buffalo North Campus. The project includes the main Atrium skylight and small studio classroom skylight replacement, north exterior stair replacement, building roof system rehabilitation, new lightning arrestor system, plaza deck waterproofing and replacement, building masonry flashing and metal panel façade repairs.
This is a very active building on campus, open to the public and occupied from 7 am – 11 pm. Phasing of the construction work was a connective coordination effort between the Architect, SUCF and campus and building staff.
The Center for the Arts building was completed in the fall of 1993 at the State University of New York at Buffalo. The building is located at the east end of the campus and overlooks Lake LaSalle to its north. On the south is the university’s Coventry Circle entrance, a major plaza for both athletic and performing arts events. The building is rectangular in plan and asymmetrically split by a two-story atrium / gallery that defines the north-south axis by a continuous gable skylight that connects the Fine Arts and Theater Arts Departments. The Fine Arts Department consists of a student-faculty art gallery, sculpture, photography, drawing and painting studios, and administrative and faculty offices. The Theater Arts Department is larger, with an 1,800-seat proscenium concert/ opera theater, and a 400-seat repertory theater, a 200 seat black box theater, 150 seat experimental theater, a 200 seat media-screening room, video production and sound studios, a general art gallery, a student art gallery and two dance / performance studios. The building is open to the entire community interested in the arts and is supported by an arts advisory council that promotes artistic programs.
The two-story building also contains a basement level and two fly house protruding above the second story roof at the theater and dance stages. The building is steel framed structure with Concrete Masonry Unit (CMU) infill between columns and exterior facade comprised primarily of masonry and metal wall panels. Aluminum storefront glazing defines entrances and punched openings. The metal wall panels serve as a rain screen and are white in color.
